PEORIA — Courtrooms in Peoria County are about to become a lot more familiar to the average person as the state’s Supreme Court has approved a plan to allow cameras and live blogging within those confines.

On Friday, Chief Justice Rita Garman announced the approval of the 10th Judicial Circuit’s application into the program, filed earlier this year by Chief Circuit Judge Steve Kouri. The 10th Circuit is comprised of Peoria, Tazewell, Marshall, Stark and Putnam counties.

The other four counties within the 10th Circuit will join the program 60 days after Peoria County.

The program started in January 2012 under then-Chief Justice Thomas Kilbride. Since then, the court has allowed circuits in only after a review of their rules and their procedures. The focus always has been to preserve the integrity of the courtroom as well as protect a person’s right to a fair trial.

There are 40 counties in Illinois that allow cameras in courtrooms.

“The extended media coverage pilot project serves a very important purpose in bringing transparency to the court system,” Garman said. “I am pleased to see the Tenth Circuit has agreed to participate, and the court thanks Chief Judge Stephen Kouri and former Chief Judge Michael Brandt for their planning in getting to this point.”

In a news release, Kouri thanked the Supreme Court for allowing the 10th Circuit into the program.

“For the past year and a half, we’ve held several meetings with judges and area media to ensure that while cameras are allowed in the courtroom, justice is not compromised in any manner,” he said.

To that end, there are several caveats to the proposal. For instance, a trial judge has total discretion as to whether the media can film or take pictures. Certain types of hearings such as juvenile hearings or those involving a sexual crime are barred. Only credentialed members of the media are covered under the rule.

As for blogging, the policy bars audio or video recording with a device such as a cellphone or a computer while a person is live blogging or tweeting.

Prosecutors worry about risks from the new rules.

Tazewell County State’s Attorney Stewart Umholtz said his main concern is protecting witnesses and the jurors.

“It is vital to maintain the dignity and the decorum in the courtroom as you want an environment that is conducive to favor truth-seeking,” he said.

His colleague, Jerry Brady, the Peoria County state’s attorney, agreed, and also noted live tweeting could be followed by witnesses who are traditionally barred from the courtroom until it’s their turn to take the stand.

“Someone could be sitting outside and following along. That could be a factor especially in an alibi defense,” he said.

Page 2 of 2 - But private attorneys welcome the change.

“The more eyes there are to observe our justice system, the more light will be cast upon it, hopefully yielding greater accountability from the government, greater appreciation for those who work hard to protect the Constitution, and greater attention to and support for those people who are falsely accused,” said Chandra Justice.

Dan O’Day agreed, saying he didn’t think attorneys would play to cameras.

“We are taught to persuade a judge or the juror. Very seldom do attorneys try to sway someone in the audience,” he said.

Andy Kravetz can be reached at 686-3283 or akravetz@pjstar.com. Follow him on Twitter @andykravetz.